 I was there, and I had a hard time believing it.
No one "in the know" except our local sports writers gave the
Lincoln Lady Railers much of a chance to win the Chatham Sectional
title Thursday night. To be truthful, no one thought they would win
a game. No one, that is, except the Lincoln Lady Railers and those
who coach and support them.
After all, Lincoln (21-15) was scheduled to first play the No. 1
overall seed, Champaign Centennial (33-4), in the semifinal match at
6 p.m. IF they could somehow pull that off, then they would get a
laughable 20-minute "rest period" before playing the No. 2 seed
overall, the Titans of Chatham Glenwood (29-9).
That, most thought, would be an insurmountable task. When all was
said and done, the Lady Railers were only two crucial points shy of
getting to the supersectional mountaintop. You had to be there to
believe it.
In the sectional semifinal, the Lady Railers took on the highly
touted Champaign Centennial team, who had previously beaten both of
the other semifinalists -- Chatham and Springfield High School.
(Where was SHG? They must have lost or something?) Centennial had
lost only four times all year and that was to excellent teams like
Bloomington and Class 4A Normal Community. Centennial was ready to
breeze out of the semifinal, through Chatham, which they had beaten
once, and then head to Breese for the supersectional.
Not so fast, said the Lady Railers. Game one was a battle as both
teams seemed to be fighting off the nervous energy or over-energy
that comes when playing in a big postseason match. Centennial pulled
away at the end and came away with a narrow 25-20 victory over the
Lady Railers.
Then in game two, something happened. The Railers decided they
were not quite ready to turn in their uniforms to Coach Howe. As the
Railers changed sides of the court for game two, there was no look
of defeat in their eyes. It appeared they had figured out that
Centennial was not invincible. They appeared ready to play three
games, get the win and get a rematch with their conference rival
Chatham Glenwood. And play and win they did!
Lincoln roared through games two and three like a team on a
mission. The Railers crushed Centennial 25-15 in game two and came
back to take the match-winner by a hard-fought score of 25-19.
Centennial was stunned. Many Railer naysayers were also. The Lady
Railers and their fans were just ready for their preplanned rematch
with Glenwood.
In the sectional championship final, I think it could be fairly
stated that it was a "team of one" versus "one team." It is no
secret to anyone that the fortunes of Chatham's team rise and fall
with the play of Hannah Werth. In fact, if statistics were kept, I
am confident that they would show that 80 percent-plus of their sets
go to her, and most of their scoring comes from the talented Ms.
Werth. I congratulate her. She is certainly an excellent player.
But, unlike the first time these teams played in the conference
finale, this time the Railers weren't overly impressed. Lincoln's
front row and back row blocked and dug ball after ball from
Chatham's leader.
Lincoln on the other hand is a team of many -- more accurately, a
team of ALL. One team, made up of 16. Those six on the floor at any
given time and those other 10 either waiting to rotate back in or
ready and able to do so if the team needs their particular talent.
And, as successive game number six of the evening set in, the
Railers needed everyone to try to pull off their second upset of the
evening.
They came up two points short.
Lincoln came out in game one of the championship to stun Chatham
with a 25-23 in- your-face victory. As Lincoln won round one, I was
standing on the Chatham side of the gym, and the fans of Titan
volleyball were uncharacteristically silent (except the ones who
told me to "get lost" and get out of "their side" of the gym).
[to top of second column] |
And while two more games were played, and played well by both
teams, I thought it was the last five or six points of game two that
decided the match. The teams had been in a fierce battle throughout
the game, and as the 20-point threshold was crossed, Chatham
appeared to have the upper hand. At 23-20 a soft tip by Ashley
Myrick landed right on the line (I have instant replay available for
anyone who wants to see) next to the up-referee, who erroneously
called the ball "out," much to the protest of the Railers. Instead
of being 23-22, Chatham was on the verge of a victory at 24-21.
Lincoln, though, refused to quit. A tremendous dig from Samantha
Lowman and two successive point-scoring net plays by Hilary Hobler
brought the score to 24-23. Timeout Chatham. As the Chatham fans
rose to their feet to cheer their team to a game-winning point 25
and the Railer fans cheered just as loudly for the game to continue,
the floor referee called a net violation on Chatham and the score
was knotted at 24-all. Two points and the Railers would have climbed
the mountain and could pack their bags for the supersectional.
Enter Chatham's Hannah Werth to the front row. The Railers had a
couple of chances to finish and didn't. Hannah Werth, on the other
hand, did. Two successive monster kills by Werth gave Chatham game
two and the momentum going into game three.
The momentum change was palpable. Lincoln looked tired and
justifiably so after five grueling games already played. Chatham
went on an early game run of six or seven successive points from
which the Railers never recovered. Not that they didn't try. Even
when the Lady Railers were down 17-10 they kept up the fight. But
Werth, with some help from her teammate Alyssa Elmore, finished off
the Railers 25-19 to capture Chatham's first-ever sectional
championship victory.
You had to see it to believe it. I was one of many who were
honored to do so. Thanks, ladies! You were ALL spectacular in
victory and even in defeat. No one could have asked for more effort
than all 16 of you gave last night. Win or lose, if given a choice
between a "team of one" or a "team that plays as one," I am taking
the second choice every time. You ALL should be proud of yourselves.
You made your high school, your families and your community PROUD!
Thanks especially to Jamie, Ashley, "B", Abbie, Lindsey and
Bridgette for going out with style. You will be missed.
That's it for this year. But, as always, let me say -- GO,
RAILERS!!
___
LCHS versus Champaign Centennial (sectional semifinal)
-
Kills: McFadden 15,
Hobler 9
-
Blocks: McFadden 7,
Meyrick 3
-
Assists: Goodrich 17,
Bonapate 13
-
Digs: Lowman 15, Hyde
15, Goodrich 12, McShane 8
-
Service points: Hyde
11, Goodrich 8
LCHS versus Chatham (sectional final)
-
Kills: McFadden 13,
Feldman 8, Hobler 7
-
Blocks: Meyrick 6
-
Assists: Bonaparte
15, Goodrich 13
-
Digs: Lowman 19, Hyde
13
-
Service points: Hyde
10, Goodrich 9
[By RICK
L. HOBLER]
Respond to the writer at
rhobler@lccs.edu.
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